Editorials

A reminiscence of the glorious past

A fortnight ago, the UN observed ‘International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists’ on November 2 commemorating the death of Ghislaine Dupont and Claude Verlon, two French journalists who were killed during their duties in the year 2013. The day is observed around the world to remember the slain investigative journalists and demands for justice are raised for unresolved cases on the said day. UNESCO has also launched the #TruthNeverDies campaign to further push awareness on the matter in a larger scale to the general public. The campaign encourages publication of articles written by the slain journalists so that the truth exposed by them shall prevail and the spirit of journalism lives on. UNESCO director-general, Audrey Azoulay said in her message, “The fight against impunity is inseparable from the defense of fundamental freedoms such as freedom of expression, freedom of the press and freedom of access to information... We must see to it that journalists can work in safe conditions which allow a free and pluralistic press to flourish.”

On the other hand, the struggle to keep up the voice of investigation, truth and dissent has become ever challenging for journalists in the country. Despite the fact that freedom of speech has been granted by the Indian constitution, Journalists and media houses have been on the receiving end of threats with intimidations and harassments increasing in an alarming rate. Last year, 11 journalists have been killed in India as per the ‘India Freedom Report ~ Media Freedom and Freedom of Expression in 2017’ released by TheHoot.org. No wonder, the country ranks 136th among 180 countries in the World Press Freedom Index, falling behind its neighbours. The report mentions that “The major perpetrators as the data in this report shows tend to be the police and politicians and political workers.”

This confrontation with media houses and those in power goes back to 1971 when New York Times published the Pentagon Papers which revealed information about America’s involvement in the Vietnam War. The US government in turn, sued the paper which became to be famously known as ‘The New York Times Co. Vs United States.’ The case has been considered as a triumph for the advocates of Free Press and a landmark by the United States Supreme Court on the First Amendment which essentially established the freedom of speech and most importantly, the freedom of press. This victory could not have been made if the Washington Post did not step up to publish the same leak made by Daniel Ellsberg. No sooner had the US government succeeded in silencing the Times, than the Post picked up printing where it had left off. In defence of press freedom and solidarity with the Post and Times, newspapers across the country started picking up the story which the government had tried so hard to silence. During oral arguments for ‘New York Times Co. v. United States’, when a government counsel questioned one of the advocate if the US administration would seek further injunction to rest of the media houses that published to story, he is reported to have said (as quoted in Bezanson, 2003, p. 24) “No, Mr. Justice. I think at that point we would agree that it becomes futile. It is useless.” In short, the government’s threats can be resisted if a number of media houses can cooperate. There is where the importance of UNESCO’s #TruthNeverDies campaign and observation of November 2 lie. In an article ‘Handcuffs for the grabbing hand?: media capture and government accountability’, Tim Besley and Andrea Prat (2006) noted that the greater the number of media houses in the information market the less likely the story is to be suppressed. As soon as some piece of information was published by at least one paper, the government’s incentives to suppress further publication were dramatically weakened. Thus, upholding the truth, following the ethics of true journalism and competition can successfully reduce the likelihood of media capture by the government.

Late Katharine Graham, former publisher and owner of The Washington Post have called the story “The graduation of the Post into the highest ranks.” Though these great moments in history have almost become a myth and the trust for media on the charts in the present times has nosedived, there shall always be few ones left who shall fight on to lit up the flame of investigation and dissent. Indeed, Truth will never die.

Print

Latest News

IMPHAL | Mar 20
President of All India Congress Committee (AICC), Rahul Gandhi has assured that the Congress party will never allow the “unique identity, culture, history of the people of Manipur” to be jeopardised under any circumstances.
Rahul Gan.....

THOUBAL| Mar 20
Even though seven individuals had obtained registration forms, no candidates have filed their election forms for the Outer Manipur (ST) parliamentary constituency elections yet. More importantly, the Returning Officer had issued a notif.....

IMPHAL | Mar 20
On the occasion of Yaoshang festival, state top officials Governor Najma Heptullah and chief minister Nongthombam Biren Singh and Speaker Yumnam Khemchand has extended their heartiest greetings to the people of Manipur.
Governor on h.....

About Us

IFP Leichin and Imphal Free Press are autonomous associates sharing contents. IFP Leichin runs this web portal and Imphal Free Press is a respected English daily published from Imphal. Intellectual proprietorship of all articles published on this website, except those sourced from Imphal Free Press will be with IFP Leichin. Intellectual proprietorship of articles sourced from Imphal Free Press will be with Imphal Free Press.